Three offensive positions the Broncos must still address before the season

The Broncos have done a good job of building the roster this offseason through trades, free agency and the draft. With those things in the rear-view mirror, Denver will begin rookie mini-camp at the end of the week. After that, it will be more OTAs, workouts and mini-camp as the whole team moves towards training camp, which starts around mid-July later this year.

The trade for quarterback Joe Flacco is the biggest move overall on offense. Heshould be the anti-Case Keenum. Unlike Keenum, Flacco already knows how to be a starting quarterback and everything that entails. He won’t fill the air with footballs in 2019, but he will run the system as designed and hopefully lead this team back near the postseason.

The Broncos didn’t have a ton of money to spend in the offseason, but they did a good job finding value additions at positions of need. Their biggest haul on the offensive side of the ball in free agency had to be right tackle Ja’Wuan James. The Broncos made him the highest-paid right tackle in the NFL and hope to end the revolving door at the position. Where guys like Donald Stephenson and Menelik Watson failed as free agent right tackles, the Broncos are hoping James can be a long-term solution.

In the draft, the Broncos added four of my top-50 players in this class with their first four picks in the opening three rounds. Three of those first four players selected are on the offensive side of the ball.

Tight end Noah Fant should step in and start from day one, just like offensive lineman Dalton Risner. The only pick of the three offensive players mentioned that won’t start early (or shouldn’t) is quarterback Drew Lock.

The Broncos defense is close to being dominant once again, but the offense needed a ton of work. That’s why the team spent so much attention on that side of the ball in the draft.

Even with all that help added this offseason, Denver still has spots on the roster that are unsettled at this time. They either have the players in place with no clear-cut starter, or there may be a position where they need to explore street free agents or even a trade.

Thus, adding more offensive help would make some sense for John Elway and Company. Here’s a look at the Broncos remaining areas of need on that side of the ball:

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Center

The Broncos don’t know who their starting center is at this time. They let Matt Paradis leave in free agency, where he signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the Carolina Panthers.

At this time, Denver can pencil in Connor McGovern as their starting center, but notice how I say pencil and not pen. McGovern is certainly powerful and had positive flashes playing center for the Broncos in 2018 after Paradis was hurt. However, McGovern struggled mightily with getting shotgun snaps back to the quarterback at a good spot. Too many times, the snap was low and that created a problem for the play right from the start.

The job might be McGovern’s to lose, but it’s interesting to note that the Broncos only have one player with a “C” next to his name on the official roster; it’s not McGovern, but Jake Brendel. Nico Falah is listed as a “G/C” on the roster, but that’s it. McGovern is listed as a guard at this time.

Perhaps the best competition for McGovern will come from second-year pro Sam Jones. In the 2018 NFL Draft, the Broncos selected Jones in the sixth round out of Arizona State. He was primarily a left guard in college, but perhaps a move to center is best for him in the pros. Jones is smart and athletic, traits that serve a center well.

There’s not much out there on the open market right now. The two best players available are only out there because they retired (Max Unger, Ryan Kalil). The Rams declined the option for veteran center John Sullivan, but his play really fell off last year. Maybe the Broncos would bring in a guy like that, but it would only be if McGovern or Jones – or anyone up for the job – struggles in camp.

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Guard

Who starts at left guard in 2019? Who starts at right guard? Both are big questions that need to be answered before the start of the 2019 regular season.

The Broncos secured the services of Risner with the No. 41 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He can start at either guard spot (and I think he can start at right tackle eventually too).

If Risner starts at left guard, it gives the Broncos a ton of aggression on the left side of the line as he would line up next to left tackle Garett Bolles. It would also mean that veteran Ron Leary is either a backup or cut since left guard is supposed to be his spot. Leary was put on injured reserve in late October last year due to an Achilles’ injury. Now 30 years old, it remains to be seen if Leary can be the player he once was and he might not be ready for full activity until well into training camp.

If Risner starts on the right side, it would mean that Eli Wilkinson struggled to impress at the position. Wilkinson is an impressive player who flashed on the field last season for the Broncos. He can be a swing tackle, starting tackle or starting guard. The team is set at tackle with Bolles on the left and James on the right. They could really use a guy like Wilkinson to shine inside during the offseason to secure a starting spot. Even though he may be a starting guard for the Broncos in 2019, Wilkinson is listed as a tackle on the current roster.

The Broncos have plenty of options at guard, they just need to figure out which two players are best in the starting lineup. Any decision they make with guys like Risner and Wilkinson will have a trickle-down effect for the rest of the guards on the roster.

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Backup Quarterback

Broncos general manager John Elway insists that the team’s “understood” starting quarterback Joe Flacco is in his prime. We’ll go with that, as everyone should, and look at who will – and should – be the primary backup to Flacco in 2019.

The Broncos are set to win more games in 2019 and perhaps push for a wild card spot in the playoffs. If that happens, then going with veteran experience over rookie potential might be the best answer at backup quarterback.

Kevin Hogan’s starting experience in the NFL will be quite valuable if anything happens to Flacco and the team is forced to throw a reserve quarterback in the lineup for a game or two. Remember, Flacco has been bothered by injuries over the last two seasons. In 2017, Flacco played the whole season but didn’t look quite right because of a back injury. Last season, Flacco made it through nine games before a hip injury knocked him out.

If Denver is winning more games this year, perhaps Hogan is a better answer than 2019 second-round pick Drew Lock.

The arm strength, leadership and athleticism is there for Lock to be a quality starter one day. Nobody knows how soon he’ll be ready to take over, but most would agree that he needs as much time to develop as possible. Lock is not a finished product as a passer, despite his incredibly intriguing tool set.

If the Broncos get rid of Hogan and have Lock as their backup they might be in trouble if Flacco gets banged up.

Oh yeah, don’t forget about undrafted free agent Brett Rypien. He’s fourth on the depth chart at this time, but he’s got plenty of talent and accuracy (short-to-intermediate) as a passer.

Rypien could be this year’s version of Nick Mullens. Last year for the San Francisco 49ers (and quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello, now the Broncos offensive coordinator), Mullens ended up having to start eight games due to Jimmy Garoppolo getting hurt and C.J. Beathard being ineffective. He went from third-string guy to decent starter in the blink of an eye. Rypien could be that guy this year if injuries strike on the depth chart in front of him.

If the Broncos lose Flacco and want to keep winning, then this decision about backup quarterback must be correct.

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The Broncos also have needs to address on the defensive side of the ball… check out that list here.

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